


Variations on a Theme (The Spectator's Remix)

by SecondSilk



Category: Harry Potter - Rowling
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Gen, Remix
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-07-13
Updated: 2010-07-13
Packaged: 2017-10-10 13:00:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/100053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SecondSilk/pseuds/SecondSilk





	Variations on a Theme (The Spectator's Remix)

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Spare (A Theme and Variations)](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/1155) by Cedarlibrarian. 



**Charlotte Diggory (Columnist)**

"You're seventeen, now, son." Amos said.

Cedric put down his book and looked sceptically at his father. I suppressed a sigh. Amos had been telling Cedric that this would be an exciting year for him for months. This was a new way of approaching the topic, making odd comments at the end of a quiet evening. But Cedric saw right through it.

"I know, dad," he said, in that tone all teenage boys have perfected.

I knew what was going on, and I was perfectly happy with leaving it to Dumbledore to announce it properly to the students. But Amos wanted to keep the boy on edge, and had asked me to play along. I could have told him it wouldn't work. Cedric looked more exasperated than curious, and simply rolled his eyes when Amos tried to look mysterious. Cedric was more interested in the Quidditch World Cup than something he knew nothing about it.

"You're an adult," Amos went on, as though he hadn't made the speech at Easter. "Responsible for your own actions, able to do whatever you want."

"My NEWTs, you mean?"

"Don't be cheeky to you father," Amos scolded him, smiling.

I coughed so I didn't laugh. They were ridiculously alike in some ways. Cedric was growing into his father, and they wore identical grins, now, just as they had when Amos had come home with the World Cup tickets.

"Do you have everything ready for tomorrow?" I asked.

"Yes, dear," Amos told me.

I had asked him that question everyday for at least a week, and he answered with the same tone Cedric had used with him. Cedric caught my eye and grinned.

"You should get an early night," I told him.

"Yes, mum," he replied, with false meekness. He grinned and picked up his book.

He kissed me on the cheek as he passed and wished us both goodnight from the door before he disappeared.

Amos put his newspaper down and crossed the room to kiss me, too.

"You'll meet up with Arthur Weasley and his brood tomorrow?"

Amos nodded as though he hadn't explained the plan to me before.

"Do you think he'll enter?" he asked.

I hadn't realised how excited Amos was by the Tournament before now. I should have, because he was as much a teenaged Wizard as Cedric was. Neither of them would really consider how dangerous it could be being the centre of so much attention.

"If you does enter, I'll worry," I said. "He has his NEWTs this year. I don't think it's fair you talking it up the way you've been doing."

Amos smiled at me, cheeky and loving at once.

"They've made it much safer this year. Wouldn't it be wonderful if he were chosen as Champion."

I smiled too, and stood up to kiss him properly.

"Up Hufflepuff!" I said.

 

**Pomona Sprout (Head of Hufflepuff House, Hogwarts School)**

It was Thursday before the NEWT Herbology class met for the term. As soon as I saw Cedric, I asked him to stay after class. He needed less help in the class than others, and there was a risk I would forget his presence and the fact that I wanted to speak to him.

We were re-potting Fly-Catching Hellebores as the first assignment. I had two families of plants, but they were two years apart in age, and as the plant only needs re-potting every four years, it was a real treat for the class to have such an opportunity. All Hellebores will react to touch, but the Fly-Catching variety naturally more so than others. They can also hear the flies buzzing, too, which makes them more interesting than other fly-catching plants. They are naturally delicate plants, and although Cedric had the concentration to do reasonably well with them, Declan Scott was a danger to his. The boy was a prefect because he was able and willing to help anyone. I knew that he would support Cedric all the way if he entered, whether he made Champion or not. But his care of people did not extend itself to the plant world.

The class was too short, as usual. Not everyone got the hang of teasing the roots properly, but many had made good progress. They tidied up as well as a large group of children can, and hurried back up to the school. Cedric lingered as I scooped the last of the potting mix back into its bucket.

"You wanted to see me, Professor?" he asked.

He obviously knew the answer; he was already there. He was nervous then, which meant he had done something wrong. I wondered briefly what it might be. I was hardly going to work it out then, so offered him the seat beside me desk. I got to ask the question that every Head of House would like to ask.

"You'll be putting your name in the for the tournament, won't you, Diggory?"

He hesitated before telling me that he'd thought about it. I was surprised. He was usually confident, and sure of himself. I had expected him to have decided already. But I was used to encouraging students towards their strengths.

"Diggory, do you realise that something extraordinary is about the happen at Hogwarts?" You've got as good a chance as anyone else. Better, even."

He interrupted to tell me that Ravenclaw's Davies and the Johnson girl from Gryffindor were his greatest competition. I smiled. The hat had taken some time to place Cedric. I sometimes suspected that it had wanted him for Gryffindor. Or perhaps Slytherin, after Amos. But Hufflepuff had been good for him, rounding out his strengths. That was the advantage he had over the others, I told him.

"Thank you, Professor," he said quietly. "Your faith means a lot to me."

"Good," I said. I was both proud of him, and relieved. He would have regretted not at least trying. "Now what are you going to do to maintain this faith that means so much to you?"

He smiled as he stood to leave. I knew he would make us all proud. He was a confident and pleasant young man, and a contender for Hogwarts Champion; we were proud of him already.

 

**Cho Change (Hogwarts Student, Fifth Year Ravenclaw)**

Professor McGonagall runs an Advanced Transfiguration Club on Wednesday evenings. She asked me to join after Percy Weasley left. I was honoured, and a little nervous. We study history and theory more in depth than in class. And we also learn spells that are more advanced than NEWT level. I was just a fifth year, I hadn't even completed my OWLs, and the first week she partnered me with Cedric.

I was partnered with Cedric again two weeks later when we were studying camouflage transfiguration. I'm pretty good with the mimicry stuff. I turned a poodle into a jumper with a poodle on it, that first week. Cedric had grinned at me, but he still made me nervous. He was almost two years older than me, and always a real threat on the Quidditch pitch. And this year we wouldn't even be able to talk about that. I lugged my bag and books over to his desk and tried to smile.

"Hi, Cedric. How are things?"

It was a lame start, but he was very polite.

I ended up rambling about Quidditch, anyway. The Triwizard Tournament was going to be great, but I wouldn't have entered, even if I was old enough. He agreed that he would miss Quidditch, and I remembered too late that he would probably enter.

He asked me about the World Cup, then, and I forgot to be embarrassed. It had been so wonderful being able to see real Quidditch up close like that. Viktor Krum really could fly, and he was still at school, probably not much older than Cedric.

McGonagall reminded us that we were supposed to be working. Cedric looked kind of sheepish when he said, "Guess we should work on this."

I said something in agreement. He looked cute when he was unsure of himself.

"Ever need help with your homework, or if you just want to talk Quidditch, we should get together," he said.

"Sure!" I said immediately. "I mean, yeah, if you get the time," I could feel myself blushing. Just because I thought he was cute, didn't mean he was asking me out. "Okay, whatever," I finished.

There was no way I was going to impress him this week. But he smiled at me, and I thought that maybe the year would go well, even without Quidditch.

 

**Angelina Johnson (Hogwarts Student, Sixth Year Gryffindor)**

Fred was trying to get me to eat, and George was trying to get him to leave me alone.

"Potatoes," Fred said. "You like potatoes."

"Not when they've got your greasy prints all over them," George scolded him, pulling my plate away from Fred's handful of roast spuds. The plate already had a few stalks of broccoli on it, and a couple of muscles from the bouillabaisse. I picked up a piece of broccoli pass the time and ignored Fred's cheer.

I tried to remember how many seventh years had put their names in. I was beginning to think that it would be all right if Patrick got it. At least he was a Gryffindor, and not Roger Davies.

I barely noticed when the plates started disappearing, but I was startled by the cheering. People quieted when Professor Dumbledore stood up and made the Hall all dim and spooky. Fred even made chain-rattling noises until Katie sent some sparks at him and he was distracted by trying to catch them.

The fire in the Goblet turned red and it spat out a scrap of parchment.

'So that's how it does it,' I thought, as Dumbledore read out Krum's name for Durmstrang. I wasn't surprised, except to think that if Quidditch was an indicator, than Patrick didn't have a chance. Fred and George made fun of Krum as he waddled across the floor.

"I don't care how he walks," Katie told them. "He can _fly_."

Katie made fun of the Beauxbatons' girl, though. She screwed up her face and flicked her hair back. Fred and George looked scandalised. I would have laughed if I'd been able to breathe. They were about to announce the Hogwarts champion, and I had to make sure I didn't trip over anything or burst into tears, although both were extremely unlikely.

"The Champion for Hogwarts is," Dumbledore said, and you could hear the hush, "Cedric Diggory."

'Hufflepuff?' I thought. 'Hufflepuff!'

Fred and George were gripping my shoulders, and Katie looked sympathetic from the other side of the table. I just stared at Diggory as he crossed the Hall. The Hufflepuff table was going wild, and he looked a little shocked. But I could tell that he was going to do well. He was going to end the year well. I would cheer for him.

 

**Declan Scott (Hogwarts Student, Seventh Year Hufflepuff)**

The Quidditch pitch looked very strange when it couldn't be used for Quidditch. Sprouty had grown the maze, but Hagrid was in charge of it. The hedges may have been a reasonable size for him, but they were huge for anyone else. They looked particularly huge against Harry, who didn't reach Cedric shoulder.

We were supposed to watch this task from the Quidditch stands. I was sitting in the front of the Hufflepuff stands with the seventh and first years, and we could see Cedric and the others quite well, for the time being. We could watch the clock and the judges, but once the task actually started, we'd be lucky to occasionally see the top of Cedric of Fleur's head.

No one had watched the lake task as much as they spent the time arguing about how quickly the Squid could eat everyone who was down there. We'd cheered loudly when Cedric had come up first. But of course, it was Harry who'd done the right thing and made sure everyone else was okay. Cedric should never have tried to think like a Slytherin. There was a reason Hogwarts's Champion was a Hufflepuff.

The first task had been the most thrilling. At the time it was scary waiting for the dragons to escape and attack the crowd, but looking back on it I could remember thinking that Cedric's dog thing was really clever, and wishing that Fleur would be properly injured. Very un-Hufflepuff of me, I know, but she had made some of the second year girls cry. Harry had been fantastic to watch, of course. But he wouldn't do as well against Cedric in the maze. Cedric was four years older than Harry and simply knew more spells.

This was the race to the end, so Gryffindor nobility would not be as much an advantage as Cedric's longer legs. They went into together, but I knew Cedric would come out first. He was Cedric Diggory, king of the Carnivorous Hellebores and the hero of Hufflepuff. And he was going to show everyone what it meant to be a Hogwarts Champion.

 

**Amos Diggory (Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures)**

I had always told him I would always be proud of him. I made sure he knew that as long as he was happy, I would be happy. I wanted him to be Slytherin, of course. I think every parent wants their child to follow them, at least at first—until they realise that they're going to be the ones following. Charlotte wanted him for Ravenclaw, after her, and he certainly had the mind for it. It was a mind that had severed him well against us all those years.

He wrote us the news from school. Charlotte and I laughed and opened a bottle of wine. Our boy was a Hufflepuff; he was going to do things no one expected of him.


End file.
